Known as the billion-dollar baby after turning professional at 18, boxer Fran Hennessy remains unbeaten as she trains to fight Fabiana Bytyqi.
Hennessy faces the former world champion on the undercard of British heavyweight title fight between Frazer Clarke and Jeamie Tshikeva on Saturday – boxing’s return to primetime on the BBC for the first time in 20 years.
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Growing up in Sevenoaks, Kent, Hennessy said she struggled at school due to having dyslexia and was, in her own words, “overweight”.
“It’s a full circle moment for me – on the BBC, primetime, it’s what dreams are made of. But I know I’m made for this stage and I’m here to entertain,” she said.
Fran Hennessy met former world champion Chris Eubank as her father worked with Chris Eubank Jr [Hennessy Sports]
A video documenting her journey from a child who struggled to skip to a professional boxer has been viewed 1.2 million times on Instagram.
“When I saw that video, I was just really proud of the younger me for putting in the hard work,” Hennessy said.
The 21-year-old has been surrounded by boxing her entire life.
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Her father, Mick Hennessy, who is her manager, was one of the most influential boxing promoters, working with Tyson Fury, Chris Eubank Jr and Carl Froch.
He said he remembered the impact of dyslexia on his daughter, with Hennessy “lost” at school.
“Back then, she was pigeonholed. But now she’s self-employed so has to learn all aspects of business outside of boxing and she’s excelling in all areas,” he said.
“Everything is in synergy, we’re all on the same mission, we’re all working towards the same goal and there’s a lot of high spirits in the house when Fran’s got a fight coming up.”
Mick Hennessy was also a pioneer in professional women’s boxing, working with Savannah Marshall, the first British female world champion.
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Fran Hennessy said Marshall was someone she “looks up to” but was not the main motivation to her as a child.
“My dad saw going to the gym as forming healthy habits, and I was losing weight without even trying because I was enjoying it so much,” she said.
“Back then, if you’d have told me to get on a running machine, I’d have said, ‘no’. But the gym just felt like my playground.”
Her brother, Michael Hennessy is also a professional boxer, and was her “hero”, while her sister, Hannah Hennessy, is her commercial manager.
Mick Hennessy was one of the most influential boxing promoters, working with the likes of Tyson Fury [PA Media]
Hennessy, who has won all six of her professional bouts, said her opponent was an “experienced girl”.
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“She’s going to bring it, but I’m going to bring it even more and I feel like this fight’s going to showcase how good I really am and showcase skills I haven’t shown yet,” she said.
The coverage will be available on BBC iPlayer from 18:00 GMT before switching to BBC Two at 20:00.
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